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Teachers reject tentative contract agreement

The members of the Association of Plainfield Teachers (APT) have rejected the tentative contract negotiated between District 202 and APT leadership.

Here is Board of Education President Greg Nichols' statement:

Tonight the Plainfield teachers rejected the tentative agreement presented to them by the Association of Plainfield Teachers (APT). The contract the teachers voted down represents many hours of review, deliberation and compromise between the Board of Education and the APT. Through that almost one-year process, a tentative agreement was reached that would have provided teachers with, among other benefits, an average wage increase of almost 4 percent, with 80 percent of teachers at or above that percent increase, compared to that guaranteed in the last year of the prior contract.

Had the tentative agreement been ratified, the teachers would have begun receiving salary increases for the 2017-2018 school year now, but that intent has been thwarted by the vote. The retirement incentive may also be in jeopardy if the parties cannot reach agreement soon due to the related notice provisions.

The Board will be working with the APT negotiations team to clarify the issues that remain and determine which issues can be addressed through further bargaining.

The Board pushed its financial comfort level and went beyond the budgeted 2.5% increase in salaries in exchange for the APT agreeing to a one-year commitment on salary and retirement. Due to the uncertainty of the impact of the new Illinois school funding formula on District 202, committing the taxpayers to anything more at this stage would be irresponsible. The Board appreciates that this situation is unsettling for all of our staff and our community and will do everything in its power to bring this to a close soon.